1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an image processing apparatus, an image processing method and a storage medium.
2. Related Background Art
In a conventional image pickup apparatus, as the freedom degree of an image information processing is enhanced with the digitizing of a signal processing, there have been proposed various apparatuses which perform, in the apparatuses, relatively simple processings such as conversion of luminance level or hue, color balance adjustment and quantized size conversion and which are additionally provided with image processing functions such as an edge extracting function and an object extracting function using a successive growth method of color components.
Moreover, a known method of extracting the image based on a difference from a background image comprises controlling an exposure amount so that an average luminance becomes adequate during background image pickup, using the same set value as that of the background image to photograph an original image, and extracting an object image based on difference data.
As techniques of transmitting or photographing the image by applying different processings to a specific area and other areas of an input image, the following techniques are known. For example, in a known technique, there is provided an extraction unit of the specific object area, and image data of the specific object area such as people and image data of a background portion taken from the input image are allowed to differ from each other in encoding properties or transmission properties (including the presence/absence of transmission of the specific area).
Moreover, an image transmission apparatus provided with a unit for cutting a plurality of areas from an image and synthesizing the areas in an arbitrary arrangement, or an apparatus comprising an object extraction unit, an image processing parameter control unit of an object and a background, or a processing circuit, and a replacing circuit are known.
For the conventional image processing apparatus provided with the object extracting function, since its object is to separate/extract an object under specific photographing conditions, it is disadvantageously difficult to extract the object in a usual background. Additionally, when image edition processings such as synthesis of the image with a separately prepared background are performed, the following problem occurs. Specifically, it cannot be judged during photographing whether the posture of the separated/extracted object matches the composition of the background image. This cannot be judged until the images are synthesized. Moreover, if the background image separately prepared by a user and the extracted object image are different from each other in photographing conditions such as lighting conditions, exposure conditions, magnification and focus state, the synthesized image becomes very unnatural and provides a feeling of difference. Therefore, processings such as hue conversion and gradation correction need to be sometimes added.